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Coupled effects of iron and sulfate reduction on the mobilization, thionation, and sequestration of diphenylarsinic acid in a paddy soil

  • Soils, Sec 5 • Soil and Landscape Ecology • Research Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Diphenylarsinic acid (DPAA) tends to mobilize in flooded soil due to iron (Fe) reduction and further thionate under sulfate-reducing conditions. Fe and sulfate reduction are natural processes in paddy soil, but their coupled effects on the behavior of DPAA remain unclear. This study investigated the coupled impacts of Fe and sulfate reduction on the mobilization, thionation, and sequestration of DPAA in a paddy soil.

Methods

Four treatments were prepared in the soil incubation experiment: (1) treatment S−C− was created without the addition of S or C sources; (2) treatment S+C- was only amended with 426 μg S g−1; (3) treatment S+C+ was amended with 426 μg S g−1 and 1300 μg C g−1; and (4) treatment S+C++ was amended with 426 μg S g−1 and 2170 μg C g−1.

Results

DPAA was significantly mobilized in treatments S−C− and S+C− due to Fe reduction. Treatments S−C− and S+C− exhibited a more rapid and final enhanced DPAA transformation than did treatments S+C+ and S+C++, with the final transformation rate reaching > 80% and < 15%, respectively, for the former and the latter two treatments, and the major products of this transformation being diphenylthioarsinic acid (DPTAA) and phenylarsonic acid (PAA). It appears that DPAA thionation was favored when sulfide was supplied at a low concentration but consistently, under conditions where no additional C source was added. However, when both Fe and sulfate reduction occurred prominently and simultaneously, Fe(II) produced consumed a significant amount of sulfide to form FeS, which subsequently reduced DPAA thionation under conditions where an additional C source was added. The produced DPTAA (> 95%) was mainly associated with the soil solid phase, and sulfate reduction appears to promote DPAA sequestration on the one hand by enhancing DPAA thionation and hence its sequestration, and on the other hand by producing FeS that sorbs DPAA.

Conclusion

Our results demonstrate the coupled effects of Fe and sulfate reduction on the mobilization, thionation, and sequestration of DPAA, and that sulfate addition may be a promising strategy to reduce DPAA contamination in Fe-rich paddy soil.

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Data availability

All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article and its supplementary information files.

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Acknowledgements

The STXM data were obtained at the BL08U1A beamline at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility (SSRF). We would like to thank Dr. Xiangzhi Zhang at SSRF for his help with the STXM data analysis.

Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41807117), the Doctoral Research Start-up Funds Project of Anhui Normal University (No. 2018XJJ50), the Cultivation Project on Excellent Undergraduates’ Thesis (design, create) of Anhui Normal University (No. pyjh2021772), and the Project of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training for College Students (No. S202210370320).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Ecology and Environment, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241002, People’s Republic of China

    Meng Zhu, Xiaobao Wei, Yuhuan He, Chongxin Huang, Mengxin Li, Shu Wang & Ruyi Yang

  2. Collaborative Innovation Center of Recovery and Reconstruction of Degraded Ecosystem in Wanjiang Basin Co-Founded By Anhui Province and Ministry of Education, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241002, People’s Republic of China

    Meng Zhu & Ruyi Yang

  3. Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Water and Soil Pollution Control and Remediation, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241002, People’s Republic of China

    Meng Zhu & Ruyi Yang

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  1. Meng Zhu
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Contributions

MZ and RYY designed the research. XBW and YHH completed the experiment and sample analysis. MZ wrote and edited the original draft of the paper. CXH, MXL, and SW revised the paper. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Ruyi Yang.

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Zhu, M., Wei, X., He, Y. et al. Coupled effects of iron and sulfate reduction on the mobilization, thionation, and sequestration of diphenylarsinic acid in a paddy soil. J Soils Sediments 23, 2162–2174 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-023-03463-5

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